Physical Activity for Everyone
Can the Public-Private Partnership Support the Physical Activity in Poland?
Interview with Joanna Mucha, Minister of Sport and Tourism
Minister, how can we encourage
Polish kids to keep fit?
First of all, by providing access to sport facilities. That is why the ministry, as its first step, is
concentrated on expanding the base infrastructure. In cooperation with local governments and
proper utilization of European funds we have
managed to overcome basic barriers.
Paul Woodward
Coca-Cola Operations Director
for Central and Eastern Europe
Experts confirm that there is nothing better than outdoor activity. Physical activity is one of the key elements
of health education, especially among young people. This
is why Coca-Cola wants to play an active role in the fight
against physical inactivity of people of all ages, and thus to
participate in the improvement of the their quality of life.
Promotion of physical activity is one of the pillars of the
social responsibility of our company. From the beginning
of its operations in Poland, Coca-Cola consistently supports the development of sport initiatives in our country. Programs promoting active lifestyles locally are the
Coca-Cola Cup, a football tournament organized for 15 years
now and has so far attracted over 600 000 middle school
students. Another example is the Lider Animator program,
launched in 2012, rewarding the best projects designed to
encourage local communities to be more active. In 2012,
the company has awarded 16 out of 300 projects submitted to the program, handing over checks for a total value of
211 000 PLN.
The Congress of Regions in Świdnica and the meeting with
representatives of local governments from the whole country is an excellent opportunity to engage in a debate on the
importance of the PPP’s role in promoting physical activity
among Poles. In addition to providing access to infrastructure and creating and developing physical education programs, it is vital to support local animators, who play a key
role in encouraging people to exercise.
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Having this infrastructure, now we are able to
finance the employment of a couple of thousands of animators working on ‘Orliki’ sports
fields as well as in places where it is not present. I mean programs like ‘Animator – My sports
field ORLIK 2012’, as well as ‘Sport Animator for
Kids and Youth’ conducted in communities that
do not have a built infrastructure under the program ‘My sports field – Orlik 2012’.
We are looking for other interesting programs
that shape character and at the same time inspire our children to be active. Our big project
plans are directed to children from classes I-III
and IV-VI to set them in motion, which we are
currently working on. We are proposing activities that will diversify PE lessons involving
teachers with integration skills. For older pupils
we have proposed a program ‘multisport’ that
is realized in the form of classes after school.
We would like to activate clubs and help them
rebuild their potential in such a way to provide
children with a suitable training.
How big is a potential of grass-roots initiatives
to encourage Poles to do sport?
People with passion are the pillars of social activities. Sport comprises a huge part of the civil
society – 40% of NGOs are sport organizations.
That is why we are planning to reconstruct the
ministry’s grant system in such a way to support
many more cross-sector partnerships, human
capital development in sports, volunteering – in
order to provide attractive offer adapted to the
local needs.
How do you assess the ‘Lider Animator’ program
and its prospective impact on universal sports in
Poland as well as grass-roots sport initiatives?
I have a very good opinion of the Lider Animator program – implemented as one of the innovative projects using Euro 2012 to support the
local community. Aspects like working with community leaders, selecting best practices, grant
support for outstanding projects as well as exchanging experience are vital tools that support
the development of physical culture. The more I
am glad that this program will be continued.
What potential do you see in implementing PPP
projects in the field of sports?
Today, the basis for the sport system to function
properly, also as regards its financial aspect, is
the close cooperation between the public sector
– i.e. the country and local governments – and
the private sector. The PPP formula allows the
transfer of an important part of the financial effort from the local government onto the private
partner. Considering high debt levels reported
by numerous local government units, this factor
can sometimes play a vital part when making an
investment effort.
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Debate:
Sport – It Pays Off!
Panelists:
The Commission is committed to promoting
physical activity and physical education through
its sport, education and youth policies, which are
backed by funding schemes. One of the newest
projects within this far-fetching strategy is the
proposed Erasmus for All program (2014-2020)
that will support the EU’s future youth and sport
policies, based on our strategy for developing the
European dimension in sport and the EU Youth
Strategy. Erasmus for All will provide funding for
young people, volunteers and youth workers as
well as for sport organizations at grass-roots
level.
How come in the middle of the overwhelming
fashion for a healthy and sustainable lifestyle
more and more people are obese? Actually the
Polish children are getting fat the fastest in the
EU according to the latest UNICEF study. What
can be done to make sport more sexy?
Regular physical activity is not only an excellent
means to tackle weight, it also plays a major role
in preventing a number of serious diseases, in
preserving health, and more generally in adding
to our quality of life. Thus sport has a positive
image in general and we need to build on this
to motivate people to be physically active for a
healthy lifestyle.
The sport movement arguably has a greater outreach than any other social movement. Young
Europeans are very interested in sport and practise in school, clubs and during their leisure time.
And they are one of the main target groups for
the EU’s policies dealing with the promotion of
health-enhancing physical activity.
grass-roots sport
amateur sport activities on the local level. Most often they
are initiated by volunteers and social activists, without
pressure on professional achievement. They are in line
with the ‘sport for all’ approach where enjoyment is the
primary motivation for physical activity.
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© European Union, 2013
Interview with Androulla Vassiliou,
European Commissioner responsible for sport
Europe is getting fatter while ‘sport for all’ seems
somewhat elusive; what is the EU doing to address this?
Physical Activity for Everyone
Can the Public-Private Partnership Support the Physical Activity in Poland?
Apart from enhancing healthy lifestyle, sport
also enhances the GDP…
Yes, according to the results of a recent EU study,
the share of sport in the EU economy, expressed
in General Value Added (GVA), is nearly 1.8%, while
the share of sport in employment amounts to
more than 2%. This is comparable to agriculture,
forestry and fishing combined! Sport is a growth
industry which is likely to create more jobs in the
future and it can play a role in helping to revitalise disadvantaged areas.
Is it why you perceive the grass-roots sport initiatives as especially important?
For me the grass-roots are where sport starts
and where it is practiced most. Every sporting
icon, from Cristiano Ronaldo to Mo Farah, started
at the grass-roots. Erasmus for All will provide
targeted support to grass-roots and amateur
sport. The benefits of this will feed into the higher levels of the sport pyramid.
How do you see the potential of public-private
partnership projects as a leverage for sport activation at the grass-roots level?
I am confident that the private sector will complement the actions supported by the EU within
the new funding schemes. Our 2012 call for proposals in the field of sport demonstrated that the
private sector is willing to support sport projects.
Smaller grass-roots projects can benefit a lot
from projects co-executed by the private sector. Close cooperation with local communities
will help us allot funding where it can make the
most difference.
Lidia Geringer de Oedenberg – Member to the European Parliament (EP) for the
second term. She is the Quaestor within the EP Presidium and so she serves the
highest-level post of all Polish women in EU institutions. In the EP she sits in
three Committees: on Legal Affairs, on Petitions, and on Budgets.
Dariusz Buza – Director at the Sport for All Department at the Ministry for Sport
and Tourism. Before he served a function of the Vice-Director to the Qualified and
Youth Sport Department and of the Director to the EURO 2012 Bureau, responsible for coordination of preparations to the UEFA EURO 2012. Formerly a professional badminton player.
Rafał Cieślak, PhD – Legal Adviser, Doctor of Juridical Science, assistant professor at the Center for Regional Government and Local Development Studies at the
University of Warsaw. He is an expert at the Polish Club of Sport Infrastructure
and a member to the infrastructure team at the National Chamber of Sport. He
specializes in the public-private partnership issues, as well as in public orders and
European funds.
Arkadiusz Zagrodnik – President of the Board at the Lower Silesian Sport Federation he is bound to since 2008. He deals with implementation of projects financed
from the EU funds worth several million euro for beneficiaries deriving from the
broad sport environment of the region. Activist at the Lower Silesian Basketball
Association.
Bartosz Mysiorski – Major Specialist at the PPP Center, an independent civil institution with a goal to cater to the public needs by the considerable speeding up of
a private investment in the fields, where the state does not own sufficient funds.
Bartosz has been bound to the PPP Center from its set up in 2008. He believes
that developing the PPP is a necessity for Poland.
Anna Solarek – sport projects leader at Coca-Cola Poland Services, including the
Coca-Cola Cup – the national youth football tournament – or the ‘Lider Animator’ –
the projects allotting funds to the local sports animators in Poland. Anna was also
responsible for Coca-Cola communication activities during the UEFA EURO 2012.
Piotr Wróblewski – President at the Physical Activity and Health Foundation.
Graduate from the Academy of the Physical Education in Warsaw. Methodological advisor to the Capital City of Warsaw in the field of physical education. Author
of numerous publications regarding physical and health education. For years he
has been engaged in the promotion of active lifestyle, especially among youth.
Marcin Myszkowski – laureate of the first edition of the ‘Lider Animator’ program. Owing to financial support, he has begun organizing skating events named
‘Nightskating’. They enjoy significant popularity and inspire local communities of
skaters to undertake further projects. For many years he has organized sport and
recreation events, attended by several thousands of people, e.g. bike rides of the
Warsaw Critical Mass (Warszawska Masa Krytyczna).
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Development of the Sports Investment in the Public-Private Partnership – Opportunity or Necessity?
Public-private partnership (PPP) is perceived as
a great opportunity to finance municipal investments, the utilization of which can be subsequently entrusted to private investors. The PPP
Law has been in force in Poland for four years.
During this time, local government units, which
are the most active players in the PPP market,
announced more than 200 procedures for selection of a private partner or a concessionaire. One
in five of them ended up entering into a contract
with the private partner.
More than 30% of the procedures were aimed at
seeking cooperation in the field of sport. Among
them pools and sports complexes, sports arenas,
stadiums are predominant. Other areas of cooperation include public health, economy, water and
sewage, construction of urban parks.
Rafał Cieślak, PhD, legal adviser, Business and Legal
Advisory Office Cieślak & Kordasiewicz
One of the main reasons for this is the municipalities’ desire to pass on the companies all the
tasks and risks associated with the planned
projects. However, as the sports infrastructure in
most cases is not economically viable, requiring
from a private partner to build and derive income
only from the utilization of the facility, encounters the legitimate resistance. In such cases the
cooperation should be based on the financial
participation of the public party at least on the
stage of the sport facility management.
Time to start!
You have the characteristics of a leader or a coach?
Or maybe you have an idea for an interesting sport project?
We will support you! Be sure to take part in the Lider Animator program!
The second edition of the Lider Animator program addressed to the local sport animators
has started. The registration for the program
will be available from 27 May to 31 July 2013.
Unfortunately, the number of the PPP proceedings in the context of sports infrastructure is not
reflected in the conclusion of the contracts and
the implementation of the projects. A recent report by our office on the use of the PPP mechanism in the field of sport, recreation and tourism
shows (www.kdg.waw.pl) that despite the great
interest of the local government in building of
sports facilities with private entities, only a few
procedures finish with success.
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But there is no turning back from PPP - in the current financial situation of the local governments,
only thanks to the involvement of the private capital there is an opportunity for further dynamic development of the municipal infrastructure. Local
community expects modern, safe and accessible
sports facilities. To satisfy these needs, all the
possible sources of funding should be used. First
of all the execution of projects in the PPP formula
is worth considering.
20 most creative sport animators will receive
grants ranging from 5 000 to 15 000 PLN for the
implementation of their sport project. Physical education teachers, sport instructors, club
coaches, associations, foundations and schools,
and anyone who runs and organizes sport activities can attend the Lider Animator competition. What is important is enthusiasm and creativity, whatever your discipline.
How to get a grant?
Fill in the application form on www.lideranimator.pl until July 31. Briefly describe your
own project designed to promote the physical
activity (new or completed).
The description should include, among others:
• objectives of the project
• implementation method: who, where and
how it will be conducted
• number of participants (children, youth,
animators)
The authors of the most interesting projects will
also receive substantive support - an invitation
to the Academy of Leadership. The Academy is
an opportunity to exchange experiences and
deepen your knowledge through a specially prepared training that enhances leaders’ knowledge
and equips you with tools to facilitate promotion
of everyday activities.
All information can be found at:
www.lideranimator.pl
Have a question? Write to us at:
lideranimator@sportsupport.edu.pl
Partners:
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Partners:
Knowledge Partner: